Curiouser and Curiouser!
by EE's Skysong
Summary: AMAXmen Evo crossover. Newcomers arrive in Wonderland, and old problems with new faces begin anew. A companion fic to They Say I'm Insane. Romy and Chalice.
1. Default Chapter

Super Disclaimer: I own nothing and no-one.

(An: I've had this idea for a week, and it just keeps gettin' bettah folks. You -might- be able to guess where this is going. All depends ppl. Why am I writing this? I feel deprived of Cheshire/Alice stuff. It's just -that- simple. You don't -have- to have read "They say I'm insane," but it might help. For those of you who -have- read it, except for the beginning, it will be written like that. For those of you who haven't, that means it will flit from POV to POV, sometimes backtracking as the situation demands. Ask if you get confused, and I will gladly clear it up. The dimension theory: Alice's world, Wonderland, and the X-verse are all on different planes of reality. Alice's England is in the Victorian era, Wonderland has no real time, and the X-verse is some time after Apocalypse.

Before we begin, a little backstory on our characters. (I.E. a section which explains what I've warped and twisted for my means.)

Alice: The creator and savior of Wonderland, as we all know. With Cheshire's help, she's discovered that she can manipulate Wonderland, although doing so saps her energy quite fast.

Cheshire: Cat-turned-man. A little confused about being human, but otherwise normal. Enigmatic.. and utterly confusing.

Rogue: X-person with "poison skin." This means that she saps people's life-force (memories, powers, ect.) if her bare skin touches someone else's. She's quite upset with Remy, for reasons unknown. To us, anyway.

Remy: Originally worked for Magneto, but has joined the X-men in recent times. Wishes that Rogue would shut up for a while and let him explain just why he did what he did. He can make any non-organic objects explode, but weapon of choice is usually cards.

And now, the fic.)

A FEW MONTHS BEFORE OUR STORY BEGINS, LONDON, ENGLAND

"Are you sure this will work, Cheshire?" asked Alice, a small frown on her face.

The young man known as Cheshire shrugged. His grin was ever-present, or he too might have been frowning. "When have I ever been sure of anything?" he replied. He held out a hand.

Alice rolled her eyes, but took the hand anyway.

"Close your eyes, love, and think of home," said Cheshire, his voice soft.

Alice did as she was instructed. She imagined the Tulgey Wood, as it had been in her childhood, immense and beatiful.

There was a faint whooshing noise and Cheshire and Alice landed in a heap in the midst of said Wood. "We need to work on your landings," said Cheshire, helping her up.

Alice looked around. Tulgey Wood wasn't quite as it had been when she was young, but at least it wasn't the horrid caricature it had been. "Well, at least we got here," said Alice with a shrug.

In the following months, Cheshire and Alice discovered that the world was like that all over. The enemies had disappeared. Only the card guards remained, and they did no harm, just patrolled the borders of their suit's realm. There were no hearts anymore.

They flitted between worlds, just to see if they could, although the majority of time was spent in Wonderland.

PRESENT DAY, THE XAVIER MANSION

(Beginning in Remy's POV.)

I sigh and hesitate a moment before knocking on the door. Inside I steel myself for Rogue's reaction. I can only hope that my time away has dimmed her anger, at least a little bit.

Rogue answers, and it becomes clear that it hasn't. Her expression is neutral for a second, and then it changes into her usual glare, turned up in intensity.

She attempts to slam the door in my face but I move, blocking her.

"Please, Rogue," I say.

Rogue's glare remains. "No, Gambit. Get away from meh."

I cringe. She only calls me by my codename when she's really mad at me.. or considers me an enemy.

"Rogue, come on, let me explain," I beg.

Rogue doesn't falter. She shoves me out the door and slams it. "Rogue, wait, please!"

There is silence for a second, and then loud music comes blasting from her room. I lean my head against her door. I notice that the music is so loud I can feel it through the wood.

"Fine, be that way," I whisper.

(Rogue's POV)

I regret ever answering that door. That damn swamp rat! _Why can't he just leave meh alone?_ I think, as I try to not think of him.

I'll never forgive him for what he did.

Never.

He had me going for a good long while, just like everyone else in my life.

I trusted him with everything, and just like everyone else, he betrays me.

_Ah'm not going ta cry, no way. Ah've wasted too much tahme crying ovah him._ Despite my thoughts, a tear runs down my cheek anyway.

How could he do that to me?

(Remy's)

I sigh again. _It's not like I was expectin' anythin' else._

Despite how well I knew Rogue, I had held out a vague hope that maybe, just maybe, she'd hear me out, that everything would go back to normal. _Pfft. Yeah right._ _Right now, I really wish I could be somewhere else._

(Rogue's. It's a game of POV tag!)

_Right now, Ah reallah wish that I could be somewhere, anywhere, else. _

I close my eyes and try to lose myself in the music, when there is a flash of light and a whooshing noise. _What in the-_

There is pain, bright and flaring, and then there is darkness.

(Alice's POV, backtracking slightly.)

Cheshire and I walk through the Tulgey Wood, as we have done so many times before in the past few months.

But today, there is something wrong. As Cheshire and I watch, a troop of Club card guards walks by. They look at us suspiciously, but do nothing.

When they pass, I pull Cheshire deeper into the Wood. "What in the world is going on?" I hiss at him. "We're miles from any Club territory.

"Werecat's whiskers, Alice, I don't know!" replies Cheshire. For the first time in.. ever, the grin is off his face. "I'm as confused as you are."

I have no idea what's going on, and neither does Cheshire. Things are not looking good.

We crest a hill and enter the Vale of Tears (it's been a while since I started the game.. but I'm pretty sure the Vale and the Wood are fairly close together).

As we watch, there is a flash of light and the same whooshing noise we hear when we cross from Wonderland to England or vice-versa. But that isn't what's strange. A young man and woman drop from the sky and land on the stretch of land before the waterfall.

The girl looks like she hit her head pretty hard, but the man seems fine. He stands up, and looks around, and then sees the girl. He falls to her side, and shakes her. We are too far away to hear what he's saying.

Cheshire and I approach carefully.

The man doesn't seem to notice us for a moment. He mutters to himself in French, then looks up and sees us. "_Merde_," he says.

"You'll have to speak English please," I say. "I never was very good at French."

The man blinks and looks confused for a second. "_Quoi?_"

(Remy's POV)

When I regain my bearings from the fall, I look around. I realize that I have no idea where I am.

Then I see Rogue.

I kneel by her, praying that she's not dead. It was a pretty far fall, after all. I shake her shoulders gently. "Rogue, Rogue, wake up. _Mon Dieu_, Rogue, come on!"

Rogue moans faintly.

I look up and see two figures walking up to us. One is a girl, pretty, who vaugely resembles Rogue (green eyes, brown hair, that kind of Goth look), and the other is a guy, who appears to be anorexic and is grinning. It's not a nice grin.

"_Merde_," I say.

"You'll have to speak English please," the girl says. "I never was very good at French."

"_Quoi?_"

"In **English**, if you don't mind," repeats the girl.

I blink, and stand up. "Who're you?" I ask.

"We could ask you the same question," replies the boy.

"M' name's Remy, Remy LeBeau. And you two would be..?" I reach inside the pocket of my coat, grabbing my cards.

"I'm Alice, and this is Cheshire," says the girl.

I blink again. "_Quoi?_" I repeat.

(That's that. Did anyone -else- notice that Rogue and Alice look alike? It's just something I've seen. I am aware that I spelled Diue wrong.. so sue me. I don't feel like looking it up.)


	2. The plot thickens!

(An: Sorry this was so late but I've been having problems with my computer. And then my 'rents restricted my internet time. Blegh. A note on Remy's and Rogue's accents: Remy is Cajun and Rogue is from Mississippi. In the comics, this is how they codify the accents.. and that's naturally become how they codify them in the fics. It's a habit thing.)

(Cheshire's POV. Does everyone understand that he is HUMAN in this fic? Thank you.)

The boy- Remy- blinks at us, looking extremely confused. "Dis jus' keeps gettin' stranger and stranger.."

"Curiouser and curiouser is the preferred phrase here," says Alice. The boy doesn't respond, just looks more confused than ever. "Who's your friend?"

Remy glances down at the prone girl. "Dis is Rogue.." he says in a strange voice.

Alice nods. "How did you two get here?"

"I doan know," replied Remy with a shrug. "Dere was dis sound like de wind and den I was here. Where is 'here', anyway?"

"Wonderland, obviously," I say.

Remy blinks again. "Dis is insane.." he murmers.

"You get used to it after a while," replies Alice with a shrug.

"Indeed," I agree.

The girl begins to stir.

(Remy's POV)

"You get used to it after a while," says the girl who calls herself Alice.

"Indeed," agrees her companion. The boy is tall and emanciated. He has a grin that never seems to leave his face, intricate tatoos all over his body, and a large gold hoop hanging from one ear. (Submitted for your approval, one Cheshire Cat-turned-man.)

I vaugely remember a book mentioning Wonderland and a girl named Alice, but all thoughts of this are pushed from my head as Rogue stirs by my feet. I fall to her side. "Rogue.. Rogue?"

She opens her large green eyes.. and screams.

(Rogue's POV)

I scream when I see the swamp rat bending over me, but that's not the reason. The reason is the gigantic ladybug heading for us, holding the biggest rock I've ever seen.

There is a yell from behind me and suddenly both me and Remy are tumbling over a small cliff into a trench. (Once again, if I remember rightly, once you fall into the Vale of Tears, there is a section by the waterfall where you're not really falling off into space but it's really hard to get back up again. If I'm wrong.. call it fanfic continuity.)

Standing there is a boy and a girl, both looking not scared but resigned and grave. "How much time do you think that bought us?" asks the boy. He is grinning, but it's a nasty kind, full of anger.

"Enough," replies the girl, running her hands over the smooth stone sides of the trench. "Mechanical ladybugs aren't that smart. By the time it finds us- if it even finds us at all- we'll have the toys."

_Toys?_ I think, confused about that. Well, I'm confused about everything due to hitting my head so hard, but that in particular.

The girl smiles suddenly. Like the boy's smile, it's not a nice one. She is running a finger over a carving of a key. She taps it, and a shelf of the stone falls into her hands. I'm shocked to see that it reshapes itself into a wooden box.

"What's that?" asks Remy from behind me. Thankfully he has the sense to stay a good bit away.

"It's a toy chest, of course. Where else would we keep them?" asks the boy.

"Quiet Cheshire," says the girl. She sets the box down and taps the keyhole.

(Alice's POV)

The force of will required to find and open the toy chest takes more out of me than I had thought. I stumble back as the chest opens into Cheshire's arms. I tilt back my head and give him a grateful smile before returning to the matter at hand.

"If you've been sent here and you don't know why, then you must be here to help," I say. "Choose a toy, whichever feels right."

"What?" ask Remy and Rogue in unison.

"Choose a toy," I repeat.

Remy shrugs and reaches for the card deck. Rogue snorts as though this was an idiotic choice. She hesitates for a moment, then grabs the ice wand. Remy raises an eyebrow and she ignores him. Cheshire picks up the Jabberwock's eye staff. I smile and grab the Vorpal Blade. I run my finger along its edge, smiling all the wider. "Ah, old friend, how I've missed you." I pocket the rest of the toys.

There is a loud crash as a boulder is dropped to our right. I see a mechanical ladybug hovering above us. I throw the blade at it's wing. The ladybug shudders, belches black smoke, and collapses. There is a crunching sound as it joins us in the trench, and then a faint hum as it releases meta essence.

For the time, I ignore it and grab the ledge of the trench. I'm weaker than I expected and nearly lose my grip, but once again Cheshire steadies me. I pull myself up and then help Cheshire, Remy, and Rogue.

"All right," asks Rogue, looking very angry, "What the hell is going on here?!"

"I'll explain as soon as we get to the Wood," I say, walking toward said Wood. "We have places we can hide and talk there."

Rogue seems unhappy with this but follows anyway. I notice that she always stays at least five feet away from Remy, never looking at him or acknowledging his presence in any way.

We walk for a bit until we come to a particularly large tree. I pull a branch on it and a door opens. The tree is wide and hollow. I walk in and beckon for the rest to follow.

I shut the door and Rogue speaks again. "Ok, **now **will you tell us what's going on? And who are you, anyway?"

"My name is Alice," I say, "and this is Cheshire. As for what's going on, we don't know either. Wonderland seems to be changing for a third time."

"Wonderland?" echoes Rogue.

"What do you mean, 'a third time'?" asks Remy.

"Sorry, I forgot you don't know all this, do you. Wonderland is controlled by my state of mind. When I was seven (An: the age Alice was in the original book) it was just odd and made little sense. When I was fourteen (An: I believe that was her age in the game) and insane, it was twisted and horrible. Everything was an enemy. I cleansed it and left. But when Cheshire and I returned, the enemies were gone. We thought it was over. But now they seem to be returning, in full force."

I stop there, letting Remy and Rogue digest this.

"Wait, wait, wait," says Rogue. "You do realize how ridiculous this all sounds, right?"

Cheshire and I shrug.

"In my world, Wonderland is a book! Alice in Wonderland! It was written in the Victorian era and makes no sense!"

Cheshire and I look at each other. "That sounds about right," we say in unison.

"But.."

"But what?" asks Cheshire.

"But none of this makes any sense!" Remy and Rogue shout in unison. Rogue looks horrified and scoots farther away from Remy than ever.

Cheshire shrugs. "It rarely does," he replies calmly. He opens the door a crack. Outside, the sky darkens. "Considering the current state of affairs, it would be a good idea to spend the night here." He shuts the door. "I suggest you sleep." He moves nearer to me and leans against the wall.

To my surprise, when I go to do the same, he snakes an arm around my waist and pulls me to his chest. I gasp softly.

"Shh love," he whispers into my ear. "Sleep, Kitten." His grip tightens and I know he's not going to let go.

I hide a smile in his chest as I fall asleep, safe and warm. For the moment, at least.

(Cheshire's POV)

In my dreams, I am standing at a crossroads in the Tulgey Wood.

I hear the faint sound of humming that steadily gets louder. As it does, I am able to make out words. "All mimsy were the borogroves, and the momeraths outgrabe..." purrs a familar voice. It is my own.

Sitting in the tree is my cat self. He is neither the fat stripy cat of my youth, or the anorexic stray that I'd become due to Alice's negligence. No, like all of Wonderland, he is a curious mix of both. His grin, however, is the cruel one.

He leaps from the tree and approaches me.

I back away. For some reason I am unwilling to come near him.

"Scared, are we?" he asks. "Not much of a change, is it, being human?"

I blink.

Cat-me continues. "Alice still flinches when you come close, when you brush against her, doesn't she." That last was not a question.

Suddenly he is the emanciated me, all bones and skin and evil evil grin. "This..." he whispers, "oh yes **this** is how Alice will always see you, won't she?" His grin widens and begins to drip blood.

I gasp and awake with a start.

I am surprised to find Alice still leaning against me. She is asleep, but stirs when I wake. "Shh, dear," I whisper, stroking her hair gently, "sleep."

"Mmm.." she murmers and leans further into me. Apparently summoning up that much will tired her very much, more than she would admit.

I look over at Remy and Rogue. They are as far apart as space permits, although that seems to be Rogue's choice and not Remy's. I wonder what makes them appear to despise each other so.

I dismiss it for a later time and fall back asleep.

(Well, that's that. Please READ AND REVIEW! It makes me feel special, and when I feel special I write more. Thankee for the two I recieved. They made me feel adequate, at least.)


	3. Confessions

(An: I'm getting nice responses to this. I feel special. Lovely, lovely, w00t w00t. I decided not to drag out the thing between Remy and Rogue.. didn't want to make it all cliche-y and tired. I hope I've added a slight twist to the usual "Rogue's-mad-at-Remy" device, but if not, meh.)

(Alice)

I am a bit surprised to awaken in Cheshire's arms. He is awake, and gives me an absent smile. It is clear that his mind is elsewhere.

"The sun is rising," he informs me after a bit. I nod and he lets me go.

I reach over and prod Remy. He sits up with a start, clutching my wrist. He blinks and slowly lets go. "Sorry," he says, blinking.

"Jumpy, are we?" asks Cheshire.

Remy glares at him, and I notice his peculiar eyes. They are red on black, and glowing in the half-light. The effect is creepy and reminds me of my enemies. Lots of glowing eyes for comparison there.

Remy gently nudges Rogue and moves away, almost as if he doesn't want her to know that he did it.

She awakens. One of her white stripes is falling in her face.

Remy's fingers twitch like he wants to brush it away. He shoves them in his pockets and looks away.

I poke my head out of the tree, and immediately pull it back, seeing the battilion of Diamond Card Guards. They aren't bad, certainly, but they can attack from a distance or fetch reinforcements. That wouldn't be pleasant.

"What is going on?" I ask, sliding down the side of the tree.

Cheshire shrugs. "I don't know."

"That's a first," I point out. Cheshire gives me a haughty look and continues. It's at times like this that I remember he was once a cat.

"A good person to ask might be the Cattipillar."

I scoff. "That old liar? He did more ill that good, the last time I checked. He's still doing that silly Oracle act."

"Then perhaps the Mad Hatter? He's not far from here."

I shiver a litte. "But if everything's going back to bad, what if..." I trail off, not wanting to think about that.

Cheshire shrugs again. "We won't know if he is or not unless we look," he points out.

"But if he is.. oh Cheshire, I don't think I could do that, not again." I trail off, hugging myself.

"Who are you two talking to?" asks Rogue. She is fully awake now, and has pushed her hair back into place.

I notice that Remy's hands are still jammed in his pockets, and he is still pointedly looking away.

"The Mad Hatter is a friend of mine," I explain. "When I came back to Wonderland he was.. he was different. Bad. I.." I can't finish.

Cheshire puts a hand on my shoulder. "He was evil, torturing his friends. Alice had to.. defeat him. He is alive now, but we fear he may.. revert to his former self."

I give Cheshire a small, grateful smile. He knows when to not talk in riddles.

"We may as well get going," I say, stepping out of the tree. The card guards are gone and the forest seems to be deserted.

We set off through the forest.

A FEW MINUTES LATER...

(Cheshire's POV)

We approach the crossing tree. There are various signs on it. The one pointing left reads, "To the Mad Hatter," and the right says, "To the March Hare." _Not that that last really matters; the Hare's always at Hatter's for a tea party that never ends... _

Alice pauses, and then walks down the left path. Remy, Rogue, and I follow.

There is no longer a gate to the Mad Hatter's house. Instead there is a large, hulking stone building. Alice frowns and turns to Remy and Rogue. "You two," she says, "You two are going to have to work out whatever's going on between you. The Mad Hatter's house is a maze, and if we argue, we die." She sits down. She is trembling a bit. I sit next to her and Remy and Rogue walk off a bit. She puts her face in her hands. "I can't do it again Cheshire, I just can't!" she wails softly. "The Hatter's my **friend**!"

I put my arm around her. "Shhh, Kitten, everything will right itself in the end."

She leans against me. I notice that she doesn't flinch. "Somehow, Cheshire, I doubt that..."

(Rogue's POV)

It's obvious to me that Remy's mad. I don't speak. Suddenly he turns to me. "Look, Rogue-"

"Ah don't want your excuses swamp rat," I reply.

Remy growls faintly, eyes glowing. "I'm not givin' you an excuse, it's de **truth!**" He glares and pushes me against a tree, so I'm trapped. "You're going to listen. Got dat?" He doesn't wait for a response, just continues. "Look Rogue. De Assasins had m' brother. M' **brother**! Dey were gonna kill him Rogue. Dat's why I went back! Belladonna's dead now! The marriage is off!" His tone softens, as does his grip. "Look, Rogue, I like you a lot. I don' want t' hurt you. Did you ever consider dat maybe it hurt me to leave as much as it did you?"

I don't reply. There's not really much I could say to that anyway.

Remy drops me. "Can you get along wit' m' now?" he asks. His eyes aren't mad anymore, they're hopeful.

"Ah'm still mad at ya swamp rat." I poked him in the chest. "Ah'll fight with ya, but ya have a **lot** more explainin' ta do." I walk off towards the building.

(Remy's)

I sigh with relief. I feel better now that I've finally got her to listen.

I never wanted to hurt her. Really.

Why hurt someone who means the world to you?

I catch up, and we all enter the building. The door shuts behind us with an ominous sounding clang.

(There we go. I think that one was shorter then usual, but eh. C'est la vie. Does everyone understand that "Ah'll fight with ya" means Rogue will tolerate Remy?)


	4. A hall of mirrors

(An: I'm getting a nice response to this. Most people don't seem to be aware that this is a sequal to "They Say I'm Insane," though. Wierd. I'd like to thank all my nice reviewers. I'll give you all cookies as soon as I can figure out how to fit them into my hard drive..)

(Alice)

We walk into the building. It is a hall of mirrors. I tighten my grip on the hilt of the Vorpal Blade. I reach in my pockets for the Jacks, as well. They work best on the Automatons that like to spring from the mirrors.

Remy takes out a deck of cards, still in the box.

Cheshire looks at him curiously. "Is it some custom wherever you come from to carry around cards?" he asks.

Remy takes one out. He stares at it for a second. He frowns. "What de hell?" he murmurs.

"Havin' problems, bayou boy?" asks Rogue.

"M' powers aren't working," he replies absently.

Rogue stops short. "What?"

He takes out another card. Again, nothing happens.

Rogue is looking at him strangely.

"Can we keep going please?" I ask. "We need to get out of here as soon as possible." There will be time for explanations later.

Rogue blinks and nods.

Remy mutters something under his breath and pulls out the Card toy. "No finesse at all," he mutters.

We walk in silence for a while until there is a distant sound of shattering glass. "Automatons," I mutter, and tighten my grip on the Jacks.

(Rogue)

"M' powers aren't working," says Remy.

I stop walking. "What?" I say, when I regain the ability to speak.

Remy ignores me. He takes out another card and tries to charge it again. Nothing happens.

I stare at him. If his powers aren't working...

"Can we keep going?" asks Alice. "We need to get out of here as soon as possible."

I blink and then nod. The whole place seems to be dangerous. I agree with her all the way.

Remy swears in French under his breath. He then takes out the cards that Alice gave him yesterday. "No finesse at all," he mutters.

There is silence as we walk, and then the sound of glass breaking. "Automatons," mutters Alice.

I wonder what an Automaton is for a moment and then I don't have to. I see one heading for us. It looks like something out of an old horror movie, a robot on wheels, all gears and switches and acrid black smoke. Alice throws the Jacks at it. They buzz around it. She throws the blade at it after the Jacks return. It makes an odd shuddering sound and breaks down.

"I hope there aren't more of them," says Alice. "I think the way out is-" Alice turns and sees what I've already noticed. While our attention was on the Automaton, the mirrors rearranged themselves. The guys are gone.

Alice growls softly. "Now we have to find them and the way out!"

I tap the glass of one of the mirrors. There is a soft pinging noise. "Can't we just break the glass?" I ask. "It doesn't seem that solid."

Alice shrugs. "I suppose it's worth a try," she says. She frowns for a moment and then is holding a long, thin stick.

"Is that a croquet mallet?" I ask, blinking.

Alice nods. The mallet sparks and she smacks it against the glass. The glass cracks but doesn't break. Alice frowns and tries again. The cracks deepen. "Third time's the charm," she mutters and tries again. This time we are succesful. The mirror breaks. However, the guys are not behind it, as we thought. Alice sighs. "Why don't they have the sense to stay put?"

"Well, they're close, at least," I say, pointing at our reflections. Or, rather, Remy and Cheshire's reflections. They blink back at us.

"Hmm..." murmurs Alice, looking around. She points at a window that is leaking light at us from behind the smashed mirror. "If the light is that way," she says, pointing to the left and the mirror, "then they must be that way as well." She sets off. I follow with a shrug.

(Cheshire)

Remy and I moved to a safer place after the mirrors moved. We found a spot where it was two walls and only one mirror. Less risk that way. The Eye Staff and the Cards are useful toys, just not against Automatons and Phantasmagorians.

We sit down and wait for the girls to catch up to us. I look over at Remy. "What is the problem with you and Rogue?" I ask. This question has been sparking my curiousity since the two came here.

Remy sighed, leaning back against the wall. He waits a minute, and when he speaks, his voice is soft and his wierd accent is thicker than normal. "Rogue and I live in de same place, de Xavier Mansion. We got on pretty well most of de time. But den I got a visit from Belladonna."

"Isn't that a deadly kind of plant?" I ask, blinking.

" _Oui_," says Remy. "De name suits her perfectly. Suit-ed, actually."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"See, a long time ago, I was a theif for a livin'. I was a member of de Thieve's Guild. Son of de head _homme_, actually. Dere's dis rival Guild, de Assasins. De two been at war for forever. So m' _pere_ and de head guy of de ot'er one, Marius Bodreaux, figured dat marryin' me and Marius's daughter Belle might end it all. 'Course, dat's not true, but dey didn't care. I thought I got out of it for good when I got a contract with Magneto, and den wit' Xavier, but de past has a way o' catchin' up wit' me. M' _pere_ died a few months back, and it turned out dat de Assassins'd kidnapped m' brother, Emil."

"Yes, and?" I ask.

"Dey ain't called de 'Assassins' fer nothin', y' know. Dey were gonna kill 'im, unless I married ole death plant. Now, if things had gone down normally, I'd probably be dead now, from overexposure to poison. But, she has this brother, Julien. De two were so close it was practically incest. He didn' like me, 'cause 'm a mutant and all dat. So, he showed up at de wedding and tried to stab me. But since he was drunk, he ended up missing and stabbin' Belle instead. Only time I was ever glad to see de _batard_." He laughs, but it's not a nice laugh. It's bitter and rueful. "O' course, you may've figured dat Rogue wasn't too happy wit' all o' dis. I tried to explain, but she wouldn' listen. So now she mad at me, makin' m' life a livin' hell. Dat girl as stubborn as a mule, and y' know what de sad part is? I love her for it."

I nod. "I think I understand," I say.

"How come y' always grin like dat?" asks Remy. "It creepy."

"Old habits die hard, and only a fool kills them quickly," I reply.

We sit in silence for a minute, and then the girls show up.

"Why can't you two ever stay within sight for five minutes?" asks Alice, looking upset.

"Where's the fun in that?" I reply, smiling, as usual.

Alice sighs in exasperation and turns around. "Come on, maybe if we'll follow the wall we'll get out," she says and walks off.

Remy and I follow.

(So, there we have it, a bit of Remy!backround for all those people who are reading this for the Alice/Cheshire stuff. There'll be more. It's just -very- hard to fit fluff into a situation like this.)


	5. Tea for five as things get stranger

(An: As you may now know, this is being rewritten, since I realized that I was heading in the wrong direction. Literally. So I'm changing the bits about the Chess Realms… so yes. I can't promise fast updates for this after I fix it, because I do have other things to work on, but this will be updated at least once a week. On another note: For all you Chalice fans, I'm going to do a one-shot songfic vignette that's like a standalone from this story. It'll be called "Blood Red Summer". Do look for it in a few days.)

(Alice)

We walk through the hallways in silence. Explanations are for later. There don't seem to be any more Automatons, but I don't loosen my grip on my weapons. Relaxation often means death in Wonderland.

We hear talking in the distance. "We must be getting close," I say.

Cheshire nods. "I don't like this," he mutters.

We turn a corner and the mirrors end. We are in a large open room. Above us is a gigantic portrait of... myself? It's very disarming.

The room is empty. The voices seem to be coming from a corridor on the opposite end. We follow it.

We enter a second large room. This one, however, isn't empty. Sitting at a large, rectangular table is the Hatter. Cheshire steps up beside me.

The Hatter looks up. He is definitely not his normal self, but considering that he's not sending exploding teacups at me (yet) I'm not scared.

His face breaks into a large, somewhat startling grin. He stands up. "Alice," he says in his wheezy voice. "How nice of you to join us for tea." He gestures at us to sit down.

"Do we trust him?" I whisper to Cheshire.

"Best to give him the benefit of the doubt," he replies. "It's not exactly polite conduct to shoot at your friend, last time I checked."

We sit in chairs near him. Not next to him, but close enough so it seems normal.

"Newcomers, eh?" he asks, peering at Rogue and Remy. "Tea?" He holds up a teapot.

Rogue's smile is careful. "No thanks," she says, pushing it away.

The Hatter shrugs and turns back to me. "Alice, my dear. What brings you here?"

"Questions," I say. Never was one to meander around the point. "Card Guards are stirring in the forest, and your house is a hall of mirrors. What is going on?"

"Always business with you. Never time for tea." He sighs. "All right. I don't know much. The March Hare has disappeared. Off to visit his cousin, the White Rabbit, so he says. Things are getting strange Alice." He looks scared. "The machinations are waking up, Alice! We are all in danger again. Wonderland's dark side is awakening."

"Do you have any idea what could have caused it?" I ask.

Hatter shakes his head, and then peers at Remy and Rogue again. "Perhaps, perhaps not. Newcomers to Wonderland have never spelled well for it's fate. At first, anyway."

"So you don't know then," says Cheshire. "Do you know who might?"

The Hatter stares at him. "Interesting shape Cheshire. Got bored with your old one, then?"

Cheshire stares back. "Answers in timely fashion, please," he replies.

The Hatter leans back in his chair. "I suppose the Cattipillar might know. But you two don't trust him, do you. All right, then perhaps the White Rabbit. He would be my next guess. If you do find him, send back the Hare? It's so boring with no one around to have tea with. The Dormouse is no chatterbox." He shakes his head sadly. "Or perhaps the Gryphon would know. But he's far from here. The White Rabbit is definitely the best choice." He nods, then starts. "I suggest you leave, my friends. Something is coming, something bad."

(Cheshire)

"But what about you?" asks Alice.

The Hatter shrugs. "I will enjoy my tea while it lasts," he replies. "Go, my friends, find what's ailing Wonderland. Cure it, if you don't mind."

I tug on Alice's arm. "Come on," I say. "He can protect himself."

Alice frowns but nods and gets up.

Remy and Rogue follow, looking confused.

The door behind the table swings open and we walk out. Before it clangs shut, we see an Automaton come rolling out. Alice makes a move to go back in, but the door slams shut with a clang, muffling the Hatter's cries.

"Oh no," murmers Alice.

I tug on her arm again. "Come," I say. "There will be time for everything later. I fear he's right. Dark things approach."

A shiver runs through Alice and then she calms, her face assuming its natural blankness. "All right," she says. "Let's go find the Rabbit."

(Hatter)

I do not attempt to fight when the Automaton approaches. All denizens of our land know that to fight is only to prolong. I take one last sip of tea.

The robotic enemy stops in front of me. I think that if it had emotions, it would be confused. It makes a few bemused beeps.

While it is distracted, I tip over the sugar bowl when standing up. The Dormouse, sleepy as ever, tips out. He squeaks in fright. "Hush little friend. Go, warn the Hare. While there is still time." He stands up, gives me one last long look, salutes, and runs off.

The Automaton seems to make up it's mind and fires.

I take my tea, although it's quite bitter.

(Cheshire)

We stumble through the rest of the Wood. We pass a battalion of Card Guards, Spade this time, and there is a terse moment of waiting as we hide and hope they pass. They do, and don't seem to notice us.

Once they are gone, Alice asks, "Did something seem.. odd about them?"

I nod. "Observant girl. They are twisting, although what the symbol on them was I have no idea."

Indeed, there was something strange on them. A large eye symbol was plastered on them in gold paint, atop the Spade symbols on their chests.

"It was the Eye of Ages," said Rogue abruptly.

"The what?" Alice and I ask in unison.

"The Eye of Ages," Rogue repeats.

"Which is..?" Alice asks.

"Dangerous," Rogue replies, and will say no more. She stays a distance off from the group for the rest of the walk.

We stop outside of the Vale of Tears."I don't suggest we go in there just yet," I say. "Issues must be dealt with first, and dark fast approaches." We sit down right before the gates.

"All right," says Alice. "What was the problem with the cards back in the hall of mirrors?"

Remy explains. Rogue still seems to be slightly lost. "Rogue and I, we're mutants."

"..What?" Alice and I ask, once again in unison.

"It's the Victorian era, Remy," says Rogue. "Ah don't think they had mutants then."

"Right," says Remy, nodding. "We have.. powers."

"Like magic?" asks Alice.

"Sort of," says Remy with a shrug. "I don' really understand it m'self. It all has t' do wit' genetics, de way y' were born. Wit' most powers, it's kind of impossible to block dem. Y' can control 'em, but nothin's been invented that can completely stop someone from usin' 'em."

"All right," says Alice, nodding. "So what is your… 'power'?"

"I blow t'ings up," says Remy without hesitating. "Cards, mostly."

I nod now. "So what is Rogue's power?" I ask, seeing that Rogue has once again separated herself from the group.

Remy fidgets, and you can tell it's not a comfortable subject with him. "She can't touch people. If she brushes her skin against deir's, she absorbs deir energy. Usually de person on de other end passes out."

"So that's why she stopped in the hallway when you said you couldn't use yours..." says Alice.

Remy shrugs.

"What is the Eye of Ages?"

"I have no idea. Has somethin' t' do wit' a guy named Apocalypse, but dat's all I know," replies Remy.

"It's his symbol," says Rogue in the same abrupt fashion she's been using all night. "It's a 'symbol of ancient magic'," she says, making quotations with her fingers. "Pretty weird that they have it in Wonderland." She seems a little dazed again.

"So Wonderland blocks these powers," says Alice. "Interesting."

"Interestin' indeed," says Remy, looking over at Rogue. He has a funny longing look on his face.

(As you can see, I only tweaked one thing in this. I have to rewrite the next chappy from scratch, but I'll try to have it up tonight.)


	6. White No More

(An: Dreadfully sorry this is so late, but since I've got two chapters for it, y'all shouldn't complain. This one's a bit surreal, so that's the reason; I'm not good at surreality unless I can joke about it. Once again, I'm playing with the game's structure. I know there's not a portal behind the Vale of Tears' waterfall, but having a portal appear out of nowhere is a little too weird even for me.)

(Rogue)

I sit and hug my knees a distance off from the others.

I don't like being here. That sums everything up. I'd like nothing more than to be home again, even though there I can't touch. Besides, who would I want to touch anyway? Certainly not anyone here. Alice and Cheshire seem all right (if rather insane) but Remy... well, him I'd rather not think about.

God, Remy. It's not that I don't like him- when he's not flirting with me he's actually pretty nice- but... God, I don't know. I'd rather not touch him if I could avoid it. He confuses me too much.

And then of course there's the whole "Eye of Ages" thing. Thought I'd staked that particular vampire. But, then again, nothing else in my past has ever stayed quiet; why start now?

(Cheshire)

I rise and step away from Alice. I join Rogue, already awake and watching the sun rise. "Where are we going?" she asks.

"The Village," I reply. "Hopefully the Rabbit hasn't moved house since last we met."

"This is ridiculous," Rogue says, but without much conviction.

"Isn't everything?"

"Cheshire, don't confuse the girl," Alice mumbles sleepily.

"Bit late for that," Rogue mutters, and falls silent.

Remy stands up. "We goin'?" he asks.

Alice stands up as well, and spins her blade on her fingers. Remy and Rogue shudder at the exact same moment, neither seeming to notice. "No time like the present, I suppose," Alice says. She sticks her knife in her pocket and leads us off.

We walk in silence until we reach the section near the waterfall. At the foot of it we can see something scrambling down the ledges. Alice shades her eyes and squints. "Is that... the March Hare?"

"Nothing else in Wonderland is so brown or so easily spooked," I reply. As I do, the Hare finally makes his way all the way down and nearly rams into Rogue.

She grabs it by the scruff of the neck. "What the hell...?"

The March Hare bucks and jerks in her grip, his eyes rolling in abject terror. "The Guards! The Guards!"

Rogue sets him down, blinking. The Hatter runs into Alice, this time. "What is the matter with you?" she asks, bending down so she's on eye level with him.

"The Guards! The Village! The RABBIT!" With that cryptic response, he runs around Alice, jumps the river bank, and scampers off on the other side.

"Ok..." Rogue says, looking confused. "What the hell was he going on about?"

Alice shrugs. "Perhaps the Guards have taken over the Village again," she replies. "Wouldn't be the first time the residents gave up without a fight."

"Dat was jus' odd," Remy says, rubbing the back of his neck.

"We're not going to figure out what's going on just standing here **wondering** what's going on," Alice says. She points up at the spot where the ledge breaks and it's possible to duck behind the waterfall. "I think he came from behind there. Perhaps there's a portal." She begins to make her way across the ledge and we follow again.

Then another brown spot comes streaking from the waterfall, followed by a Club Guard. Alice shudders as the Club Guard catches up.

"The life expectancy ain't long 'round here, is it," Rogue mumbles, biting her lip and ducking her head.

"If you're one of my friends, no," Alice agrees. "If you're not... still no." Alice takes the knife from her pocket again and throws it at the Guard, hitting with her usual unerring accuracy.

"Yuck."

Alice ignores this last comment and scales the second ledge, going up higher. "Almost undoubtedly a portal," she says.

(Rogue)

I am extremely weirded out by the calm response Alice has to the death of her friend. I suppose she might be used to it, but that doesn't make it any less creepy. She didn't even blink, just responded to my comment and took out the threat.

Like I said, extremely weirded out.

(Alice)

I can tell that Remy and Rogue think I'm either cold and uncaring or completely insane. The latter may be somewhat true, but I do feel the loss of a friend. Now isn't the time to respond, though. Right now, there are many questions to be answered, and crying for lost ones won't answer them or bring them back.

We walk across the ledge when the strangest of all newcomers arrives. Not White, nor brown; no, this one's blue, springing from the waterfall (and the portal behind it) with the speed of fear and purpose. We are only a level beneath him, so it's easy to see who he's supposed to be. It's the Rabbit, but different. He's still got his waistcoat and long ears, but he's wearing a clock on his wrist instead of having a pocket watch, and he's not White. He's a dark shade of blue, and his eyes are yellow. And instead of his normal rabbit's tail, a long, skinny blue one with a spaded tip trails out behind him. He hops down the ledge and approaches us. Some things, like I've said, haven't changed. His movements are still twitchy and his eyes never settle. "Hello, Alice."

Rogue finally gets a good look at him, and sways on her feet beside me. Remy steadies her, but he seems shaken as well, and she seems to neither notice nor care. Her attention is fixed on the not-quite-White Rabbit.

"My cousin escaped, did he?" Rabbit asks, his eyes never settling on anything for more than a second.

"The dormouse wasn't so lucky," I reply.

"Oh! Oh..." the Rabbit says, looking dismayed and even more twitchy.

"Rabbit, what happened to you?"

The Rabbit's frightened yellow eyes finally settle on me. "Isn't it obvious Alice? Wonderland is changing, again, and not for the better..."

"Well I knew that," I snap, "but why is it changing at all?"

Rabbit doesn't say anything. Rather, his eyes flick to Remy and Rogue, still standing there looking rather shocked.

"That can't be a good sign," Cheshire comments.

The Rabbit speaks now. "I don't know, Alice. No one does. The only one with any idea, as usual, is Cattipillar."

"Everyone keeps pointing us to him," I mutter. "Such an annoyance."

"Annoyance it may be, but it's the only clue we've got," Cheshire points out.

"I'm afraid that's all I can tell you, beyond that there's a portal behind the waterfall," Rabbit says, now hopping from foot to two-toed foot.

"We knew that," I reply. "Are there Guards?"

"Yes, unless they've moved on in the five minutes I've been gone," Rabbit snaps, showing unusual annoyance and impatience. He looks at his watch. "Late, late, late," he murmurs, then pushes around Rogue and Remy and hops on.

Rogue stares after him, her green eyes bugging out of her head. "Oh gawd... was that who Ah thought it was?" she mumbles.

"If you mean the White Rabbit, then yes," Cheshire replies. "If you mean someone else, then possibly. He didn't quite look like himself, did he?"

"No," Rogue says. "He looked like Kurt."

"_Oui,_" Remy agrees, shaking his head as though to clear it. "_C'est fou._"

"Meaning...?" Cheshire asks.

"It's nuts," Rogue says. "Don't need ta know French ta see that."

"It always has been," I say, tapping my foot. "Do you two need more time to be shocked, or can we get headed for the Gryphon?"

"I feel redundant, what with all this seesawing back and forth," Cheshire mutters. "We go one place, only having to come back to where we began, and then back to where we went. It's making me dizzy."

"Well, at least it doesn't take long," I retort.

"Kurt's mah brother," Rogue says abruptly, seemingly in response to my question. "That... thing looked like him. Too much like him. What the hell is going on?"

"Exactly what we'd all like answered," Cheshire chimes in. "And I believe the Gryphon may know. So if we may proceed...?"

Rogue shakes herself briskly. Remy is watching her nervously. "Let's go."

After this, we walk the paths we've been walking for the past few days.

"Tell me that whenevah we get wherevah we're goin' it means we won't havta come back here," Rogue says.

Then the ground shakes. Cheshire and I haven't forgotten how vulnerable we are at this size. We run for the trees, but it's a bit late for that. The feet of a full-size Card Guard stomp across the flat, unstable ground and Remy and I fall down a new hole into the ground. I have time to think _Down the rabbit-hole once again, Alice?_ before we hit the ground.

(Cheshire)

I lean over the edge of the hole, careful not to fall in myself. It goes down deep.

"Does that happen a lot?" Rogue asks.

"When evil passes much is possible," I murmur, stepping away from the hole.

"Oh yeah, that's a lot of help," Rogue snaps. "So what do we do now?"

"Do exactly what we've been doing," I reply. "We keep going in search of information."

"What about them?" Rogue asks, thumbing at the hole.

"We let them work it out themselves. Alice always finds a way."

"Hope yer right," Rogue mutters, as she follows the path into the forest.

(That would qualify as a cliffhanger if the next chapter wasn't already posted.)


	7. The Space Between Two Souls

(An: Well, then, here we go again. The places they're going through are based on the levels "Icy Reception" and the Wonderland Woods levels, if you were curious.)

(Remy)

We fall and fall and fall some more, and finally land in a pit of ice. "Ok, dis is gettin' seriously weird."

"Curious indeed," Alice agrees. "But at least I know the way out." She slides down the slope and into another room of ice, this one with a walkway of ice twining down the middle. It doesn't look all that stable. She jumps to it, and taps the way to the exit with one foot, looking cautious for the first time. "Well, at least it's not going to collapse this time." She gestures for me to follow and I do.

She leads on, talking calmly all the while. She also has a habit of spinning her knife on her fingers as she speaks. "So what happened before you came here? As in directly."

"Why do y' want t' know?"

"It might help explain why you're here. It could just be a random occurence; those happen a lot here."

I shrug uncomfortably. "Rogue and I had an argument. She slammed de door in m' face. I stood dere for a second, and den dere was dis flash of light and a noise like a wind and we were here. So y' do a lot o' walkin' here?"

"Yes, mainly walking and killing anything nasty that gets in your way," Alice agrees.

"I can see de travel brochures already," I mutter.

"It'll be interesting traveling with someone with a penchant for sarcasm," Alice comments as we walk out into sunlight. "You're quite different when Rogue's not around, aren't you?"

I blush and stammer. "She... disconcerts me, ok?" I look around. "Right... so we go from ice t' a garden," I mutter. "What de hell kind o' place is dis?"

"Excellent question," Alice says.

(Cheshire)

A BIT FARTHER AWAY, IN THE WONDERLAND WOOD...

The Woods appear to have been cleared of Card Guards, and that makes me wonder where they could be massing. Walking through them with their lack of enemies leaves plenty of time for speculation, so it seems. "It's almost unsettling how quiet it is here," I comment. "Why are you still upset with Remy?"

"Evah hear the phrase 'curiousity killed the cat'?" Rogue snaps, glaring at me.

"Of course," I reply, shaking my head. "Awful metaphor. Kindly decline from using it in the future. And the worst part of it is, everyone forgets the latter half, 'but satisfaction brought it back.'"

"Yah're not gonna let go of this, are ya?"

"Unless you tell me something more interesting, no, probably not."

Rogue sighs. "Well... it's just... it seems like everyone Ah trust does somethin' nasty ta me. Mah foster parents were both just tryin' ta exploit me, mah best friend... well she's another good example. Ah seperate mahself from most people so much that pullin' back's just a habit. Trustin' him Ah knew was a bad idea. He was a bad guy at first. Worked with this uber-bad-guy, Magneto. He flirted with me, kidnapped me, and then he joined the team. He would not leave me alone. Ah couldn't help it. Ah started ta like the guy. And as usual, just when Ah started ta trust him, bam! he goes off saying he's got to get married ta some chick down South."

"Sounds like a lovely relationship," I comment.

Rogue's eyes narrow. "Ya try not bein' able ta touch, and then have two best friends right in a row betray ya like that and then we'll talk."

"I suppose I **can't** relate," I agree, "having no friends, unless you count Alice..."

"And that's not really a 'friend' kind of relationship, is it," Rogue says with a smirk.

"No, and I wouldn't have it any other way." We come to the fork in the forest that leads to the Hatter's, and I'm reminded of my dream. I supress a shudder.

"Which one do we take?"

"To get to the Gryphon? We head left," I say, and walk down the path that says "To the March Hare." I wonder idly if the March Hare has reached home by now.

(Alice)

"It's too empty here," I mutter, looking around at the grass and the plants.

"Empty?" Remy asks.

"Usually this spot's full of ants and the like, even when Wonderland was peaceful."

"Oh, lovely. Giant killer ants. Dis place jus' gets better an' better."

"Always have a comment, do you?"

"_Oui_," Remy says with a faint trace of a smirk.

I shake my head and keep walking. "We go far enough, we'll come to the Centipede," I murmur. "From him the mushroom of life... perhaps the Cattipillar still dwells around here, even."

"What's so bad about de Cattipillar anyway? Y' always balk when we're told we should talk t' him."

"He's a lying, cowardly creature who does nothing but stir up trouble and smoke his hookah," I snap.

"Good reasons," Remy agrees, "but if he knows more den we do... y' ever hear de sayin' 'de enemy of y'r enemy is y'r friend?'"

"Yes, but what in the world would **you** know about it?"

"_Ma chere,_ bein' a thief is all about backstabbin'."

"Don't call me that!"

"_Desole._ Habit."

_This is going to be a long walk..._

(Rogue)

Cheshire confirms what I've always known: guys are annoying. Maybe it's just the ones I know, but they always want to know everything about you and they never stay interested in anything for long.

"You think I'm annoying, don't you?" Cheshire says, jumping down from the tree he was climbing to get his bearings.

"Yes, Ah do," I mutter. "Perceptive, ain't ya?"

That smirk he wears isn't much better. At least Remy turns his smirk off once in a while.

"How much farther is it?" I ask.

"Not much," Cheshire replies with a shrug.

"Real helpful, cat boy."

(Remy)

"Ok, so now where are we?" I ask, cocking my head.

Alice dusts her hands off. She points at the large cave we're standing in front of. "That would be the Centipede's house."

"So where are we?"

"Where we're supposed to be," Alice replies, in a tone of increasing annoyance.

"So what do we do now?"

"Wait for Cheshire and Rogue to- Look! They're coming out of the forest now!" She points at two people emerging from the forest. Rogue seems to ask where they're supposed to go now, and Cheshire shrugs.

"Dey don' know where t' go, do dey."

"No, I don't think so... we need to give them some kind of sign to our position..." Alice thinks about it for a second, then pulls something out of her pocket.

"Is dat a jac- wait, I don' t'ink I want t' know. Jus' say it's subtle and I won't ask any questions."

Alice ignores this and tosses it. It tumbles a good twenty feet away and then exploding. It gets Cheshire and Rogue's attention immediately.

"Dat was as subtle as an axe without a blade."

Alice shrugs. "It got their attention, didn't it?"

"_Oui,_ and anyone else's within fifty feet!"

Alice shrugs again. "There isn't anyone within fifty feet or we'd be dead by now."

_Dis girl is exasperatin'... why is it dat I always get stuck wit' de women dat're hard t' deal wit'?_

Rogue and Cheshire make their way over, Rogue pausing to eye the scorch mark the bomb left.

"Very nice. Very subtle," Rogue says as soon as they're close enough, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Alice shrugs for a third time and walks over to Cheshire. "That's the same thing he said."

Rogue eyes me with undisguised contempt and now it's my turn to shrug.

(All right, that was a bit more jokey than usual, but only because I've been wanting to play with Remy's more sarcastic side in this and my brain's sort of fried from too much math. I'll try for an ordinary update schedule (i.e. trying for every three days) but I can't promise anything...)


	8. The Cattipillar's Curiousity

(An: I -finally- got my inspiration back for this fic. Go me. Pyschobunny- yes, the Hatter died. It just seemed too blunt to state it any other way. Go find yourself a copy of the game. Because it is awesome. KB- I highly agree with you... but it's hard! -wails- "Smexy?")

(Cheshire)

"If you're both quite **done**," Alice snaps, tapping her foot. "I'd like to get the relations with the Cattipillar over as fast as possible."

"Well, let's go then," Rogue mutters, glaring at the ground.

Alice sighs and turns sharply on her heel, walking into the cavern that holds the mushroom.

"God, don't these people believe in air circulation?" Rogue asks, waving away some of the smoke that permeates the cavern.

"He might... if he was a person," I point out.

Rogue just gives me a "look" and follows faster after Alice.

"Cattipillar!" Alice shouts, approaching the (comparatively) gigantic mushroom.

A segmented figure bends down out of the smoke cloud. "Yes...?"

"Some of the mushroom would suffice," Alice replies, looking impatient already, "and none of your oracular bit."

"I was the Oracle only so the Queen wouldn't rip me to pieces," the Cattipillar responds. "You know that as well as anyone, Alice." He turns his attention to Remy and Rogue.

"Didn't your mother ever tell you it's not polite to stare?" Rogue demands, glaring at the Cattipillar.

The Cattipillar says nothing.

"Ah can see what you have against him now," she mutters to Alice.

"The **mushroom**, please," Alice repeats, rocking back and forth on her heels.

"All in due time," Cattipillar agrees.

Alice frowns and crosses her arms.

"Are you going to give us the damn mushroom or what?" Rogue cries, after a few moments of silence.

I notice that Remy has his head tilted back, to hide a smile.

(Rogue)

Ok. Yeah. Not the most polite thing to say to someone who's obviously important, but he's annoying me. A lot.

(Cattipillar)

I cannot stop an amused smile as the new girl erupts. "I am merely," I say, crossing and uncrossing two of my legs, "pondering what effects your presence could be having on Wonderland at large."

Alice and Cheshire exchange uneasy glances, the new boy looks thoughtful, and the girl seems even more annoyed.

"Well, if you'd give us the mushroom," Alice points out, tapping her feet, "we could leave you to 'ponder' in peace."

"Excellent point," I reply.

(Cheshire)

The Cattipillar gives one side of the mushroom a good kick. Several pieces fall off. "Help yourselves."

"Well. Ain't he charitable," Rogue mutters.

"Just take some mushroom," Alice responds.

(Ok, yeah, that was short. But I wanted to assure the AMA fans that I am alive, and now have my muse in a stranglehold. Be of good cheer. There are only eight chapters left, and I shall try my best to eke out another chapter within the week.)


	9. Will You, Won't You, Will You, Won't You...

(An: Ok, so it was more than a week, but, to paraphrase the great Stephen King, we writers lie all the time. And this is better than months without updating, right? Play the damn game! And there actually might be less than eight chappies left; my outline needs work.)

(Rogue)

Changing size doesn't make you feel any different; it just gets the grass blades back to proportion.

"One side will make you grow taller; one side will make you grow larger," Cheshire murmurs, rocking back and forth on his heels.

"Don't you go quoting him now!" Alice snaps.

Cheshire just shakes his head and smiles his creepy smile. "Shall we go now?" he suggests. "When one's confused, I find it best to keep moving and thus avoid thought."

_What is he talking about?_ I wonder as they lead us off.

(Cheshire)

The Griffin, apparently, is looking for us as fixatedly as we are looking for him, for as soon as we step into the gardens, we hear the sound of approaching wings. Griffin lands in front of us, folding his wings. "Hello, Alice, Cheshire," he says, with a beaky grin. "Care for a dance?" He hums the Lobster Quadrille, that is, until he spots Remy and Rogue.

"Have Ah suddenly sprouted an extra head?" Rogue demands. "'Cause it just seems like Ah'm gettin' this response a lot."

"Well, we don't get new people around here very much," Griffin explains. "And you're just... so odd looking!" He rolls over and peers at us, still with that beaky grin.

"Thanks," Rogue mutters. "That does so much for mah self esteem."

"But you're not here to dance," Griffin says, suddenly straightening up and regaining his usual, more serious demeanor.

"Perceptive," I agree.

"What is it you want then?" He stretches, flexing claws that don't look normal, for some reason. Then I realize that they've acquired a silvery sheen and look far sharper than usual. There's also only three per foot.

"To talk," Alice says. "Strange things are happening in Wonderland."

"Stranger than usual?"

"Downright dangerous."

"Ah, so it would be **that** you're talking about," Griffin murmurs. He stands up straighter. "Yes, as we've all noticed, Wonderland is once again degrading... but to a different tune this time, wouldn't you say?"

All of us blink, perplexed by his veiled statement.

He stretches again. "When you changed him," he inclines his head at me, "it was inevitable that the rest of us would start changing as well. And when they came," he nods at Remy and Rogue, "it would be prudent to assume that things were changing even more."

"But we don't even know how they got here," Alice points out, frowning.

"Exactly," Griffin agrees. "If you knew, that would mean that the changes were per your instructions. And they weren't. Still following my steps?"

We all nod. I get the idea that Alice doesn't like the way this is going.

"So it has to be per someone **else's** instructions," he continues. "And when Wonderland has to change, it turns to someone flawed, yes?"

Rogue suddenly begins to look nervous, Remy looks concerned, and Alice just frowns some more (which is to be expected).

After Griffin says nothing for a moment, Alice says, "And...?"

"And isn't it obvious, Alice? Wonderland changed because of **your** fears; now that they're gone, it's reacting to someone else's." He gives Rogue a meaningful glance. "And unless they leave, and soon," he flexes his funny claws, "then things will get... **worse**." His tail thrashes.

"But how can we leave, if we don't even know how we got here?" Remy asks.

"There is a portal," said Griffin. "Far from here. You might know the place already, Alice."

Alice hangs her head. "It's at the Queen's old palace, isn't it."

"Yes, unfortunately," Griffin agrees. "I know that for you, dredging up old memories mayn't be the wisest course, but if you don't want things to progress..." He jerks his head at Remy and Rogue again. "Then their leaving is the only course, and their leaving can only be through the portal."

Alice suddenly turns on her heels. "Let's go," she says, to no one in particular.

In the distance, Griffin calls, "Are you **sure** you wouldn't like to join the dance?"

(Remy)

Rogue looks upset. She has a kind of "Why-are-the-bad-things-always-my-fault?" expression on her face. If this all had happened before that little incident down South, then at the very least I could've been there for her as a friend... but she still detests me. Same old, same old.

Then she turns to me, stopping short. "Did he seem... off to you?"

"Like I would know."

"His claws. His voice. Didn't they seem... Ahdunno... **familiar**?"

"Almost... badger-like, y' mean?"

"Yeah..." She looks down at the ground, and now her expression just looks like she might cry.

(Since I didn't want to be as blunt as I was in chapter six... badger is Remy's nickname for Logan, who is like Rogue's mentor person. He's also **remarkably** like Griffin... only the straight Evo fans would've gotten this, otherwise, though... -annoyed- Since school ends this Friday, you can probably expect speedier updates on this... and it's still almost over. Excuse me while I squee. Although your cries of wanting more do please me... -wink wink-)


	10. On the Doorstep

(An: Well, this isn't gonna be a big update (have they ever been, lately) but it's something, anyway. Short, fluffy, and explanatory.)

(Cheshire)

Alice is gazing out over the land. We're near the castle. It looms, empty and abandoned but nevertheless menacing. Her dreamy, green eyes are unfocused.

I smile at her- not my grin, a true smile, that only she can bring to my lips.

Then she speaks. "Wonderland's not going to be normal again, is it?"

"Was it ever?"

She looks over at me and frowns. "You **know** what I mean. The way it was supposed to be."

I shake my head.

Alice looks utterly forlorn at this, staring down at her hands. I lean over by her and whisper in her ear. "**I'm** not the way I'm supposed to be, you know..."

Alice's green gaze finally turns from the morbid palace to me. I catch her lips with mine, kissing her for the first time since we came to Wonderland.

(Alice)

Cheshire looks at me in that frank way he always does after doing something like this- strange and right and confusing. His unsettling yellow eyes and the small smile on his face reveal nothing of his thoughts.

"I know," I tell him. And this time I kiss back.

(Rogue)

_This weirdness is all mah fault,_ I think, trying to get my head around it. _But when's it ever not?_

Remy is sitting nearby, his chin propped on his fist and his beautiful, demonic eyes unreadable.

(Remy)

I sigh as the sun sets. _We've been here a while. I wonder what de others are doin'..._ I look over at Rogue and wonder, _Does it matter?_

(Rogue)

I can feel Remy looking at me.

I wonder what he thinks of all this. Wonderland. The surreal, deadly edge to everything. Alice and Cheshire. Me.

When Remy left, I told everyone I didn't care about him and never had. But I can't lie to myself.

(Cheshire)

We sit in silence for a while. Then Alice speaks, gesturing at the castle. "Is anybody in there?"

I shrug. "I haven't the faintest, but I wouldn't think so. It's a bad place."

She nods, pulling her legs against her chest and resting her arms on her knees. "Very much so."

(Alice)

I look over at Cheshire, looking at me, then back out at the castle.

When the sun rises and I awake, I'll have to go in there. The one place I swore I never would. The memories are bad enough.

I look back at Cheshire. He smiles at me. And I get the feeling that everything will be alright.

(Rogue)

Everyone else is asleep now, and the moon is high in the sky.

I remember what the Griffin- **Logan**- had said. Wonderland was reacting to my fears. I think of the Cards, with the Eye of Ages smeared on them. I got the impression that they weren't a big deal. We're going to the Red Queen's castle- as close to a villainess as _Alice in Wonderland_ gets. Whatever's in there- and I'm sure there's something- will be symbolic of something I fear worse than Apocalypse. What that is, I'm not sure... but I know I'll find out.

It is a long while before I fall asleep.

(As promised, short and fluffy. This is only a setup chapter, though. There will be TWO more chapters and then that's it folks. Please don't lynch me, but I would like this to be done. And for all of y'all who want more- GO PLAY THE DAMN GAME!)


	11. The Queen's Keep

(An: You people should be grateful. The inspiration for this chapter bit me during what would've been quite a peaceful sleep and didn't leave me alone until I went and wrote the damn thing in longhand. Fuzzy, we're all confused. Everyone, if you like my fics, go read Strange Fuzz's. NOW. They're quite a bit less confusing then mine... and apparently less predictable. Uhm, yeah, couple of bad words in this chapter so begone if you dislike that stuff.)

(Cheshire)

The Queen's castle is empty, as I thought.

Our footsteps echo hollowly down the long hallways. Nothing and no one is here... so it would seem.

(Alice)

I stay close to Cheshire, the memories smothering me like a mental gag. I don't feel as assured as I did last night. Who would, in a place like this?

(Rogue)

Alice and Cheshire lead the way, so close it's hard to tell where one ends and the other begins.

Remy and I trail behind.

_What do I fear more than Apocalypse?_ The thought keeps running through my mind, unless I risk a glance at Remy. Then it's _What does he think of me?_ again.

I'm not sure which is worse.

(Cheshire)

We come inside the throne room by accident, and find I'm wrong- there **are**other people here.

It's the Tweedles, oddly different, like everything else. Tweedle Dee is emanciated and now posesses silver locks, but it's Dum who's really noticeable- he being a she with straight black locks.

They're arguing, but that's to be expected.

They pause in mid-insult, looking at Alice and Rogue. "Would you like to help us battle?" they ask in unison.

(Rogue)

I barely hear their question, the poem in my mind prevalent.

_Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee  
Agreed to have a battle  
For Tweedle Dum said Tweedle Dee  
Had spoiled his nice new rattle  
Just then flew down a monstrous crow  
As black as a tar barrel  
Which frightened both the heroes so  
They quite forgot their quarrel_

"Why is a raven like a writing desk?" I whisper.

Remy glances at me, frowning, as if reading my thoughts.

(Alice)

"No, we would not," I reply. "Have either of you seen a portal?"

Dee ignores my question. "Oh, but we do so **need** to battle," she sighs. She scowls at her twin. "He broke my lovely rattle."

"Blame me for everything," Dum mutters.

(Cheshire)

They probably would've started arguing again, if there hadn't been a deafening squawk from behind the bare throne.

An explosion of almost comical terror comes across both Tweedles, and they dash off. But that's another thing to be expected.

What **is** new is the gigantic black bird.that steps from behind the throne, right in front of Rogue. It pauses, and then croons, "My daughter."

(Alice)

Rogue stands as still as a statue as the bird comes ever closer. Then she laughs. It's not a pleasant sound- far too close to things I heard in the asylum. She tilts her head back and laughs again. "Is that **really** the best you can do?" she asks, seemingly of the raven, but it really seems to be directed at all Wonderland... or maybe herself.

(Remy)

_Mystique,_ I think. _It makes sense._

Rogue shakes her head. "Ah'm not scared of you."

This is apparently the response this awful caricature of her foster mother has been waiting for, since a pleased gleam enters its eyes, and it leans forward as if to bite her head off.

"Ok, so maybe Ah **am** scared," Rogue admits, meeting its eyes. "But not of you. Ah'm scared of you coming and fucking with my life again." Regret enters her voice. "Ah've already done that, so why don't you just get out of mah way and let me go home?"

(Cheshire)

What she does next is unexpected by everybody... but especially the raven. Rogue reaches back and grabs the Vorpal Blade from Alice and hurls it straight into the monster's open beak.

"Ah'm not scared of you," Rogue repeats.

The raven screeches once, blood dripping from its maw, and then falls over. Its wing twitches once, twice... and then stillness. The raven disappears to be replaced by a portal.

Alice goes over and retrievers her Blade.

(Remy)

Rogue makes a soft sound. I look over and realize she's crying. "...Rogue?"

"Ah **am** scared," she whispers. "She's mah mom. What if Ah turn out like her- a conniving bitch who ruins everyone's life?"

_She's gonna hurt me later._ I banish this thought and pull her close. "Y' won't, 'cause y' aren't like her."

Rogue looks up, meeting my eyes for the first time in I don't know how long.

(Rogue)

I'm just about to suggest we go through the portal, when suddenly Remy is kissing me. I try to pull away for a moment, but his grip is too strong, and besides, nothing bad's gonna happen. I relax and for a few sweet moments there's nothing but Remy and me and none of the shit between us.

(Cheshire)

They break off and Remy nods at us.

Rogue steps through the portal without a backward glance and he quickly follows.

There is a rush of wind and a flash of light as the portal closes.

(And that's that. Blegh, I should've typed this up last night. I don't like it as much as I did then. Click on for the last chappy.)


	12. The End

(An: And here it is, the end... you guys are probably gonna lynch me for this.)

Alice woke up with a gasp, sitting upright in her small bed.

Cheshire reclined at the foot and eyed her curiously. "Something wrong, love?"

Alice remembered her dream for an instant and a heat rushed through her body as she glanced at the wonderfully human Cheshire. She shook her head. "Nothing, just a curious dream." She bit her lip, suddenly shy. "Lie down?" she asked after a moment.

Cheshire smiled and stretched out beside her, hugging her close. "Go back to sleep, dear," he instructed.

Alice obliged.

IN ANOTHER DIMENSION...

Rogue opened her eyes slowly. In the half-conciousness between asleep and awake she was certain there was a girl and a large, grinning cat by her bed. "Remember what you learned," the girl murmured, one hand caressing the bony cat. "He doesn't deserve it."

Then Rogue awoke fully and the girl and cat faded, the cat's grin and the girl's grim green eyes last of all.

"What a **weird** dream," Rogue mumbled, rubbing her head. She blinked, earlier events crowding out the fading dream. She realized her music was still playing. _Ah couldn't have been asleep for more than a half-hour._

She reached over and turned off her stero, a gnawing feeling of guilt settling into her chest. _Remy didn't deserve that... Ah could at least hear him out- Ah owe him that much._

Rogue sighed, straightening her mussed hair and generally procrastinating.

After a moment, she forced herself to get up and steal over to Remy's door. She knocked twice.

Remy answered, looking as depressed as she'd ever seen him. He scowled at her, crossing his arms, and leaning against the doorway. "What," he asked in a venomous voice, "do **y'** want?"

Rogue bit her lip and everything came out in a rush. "Look, Remy, Ah'm sorry. Ah was a jerk earlier."

Remy eyed her skeptically. "_Oui,_ y' were."

"Don't make me regret this, Cajun. The point is- Ah shoulda listened. It's just... Ah thought you were just playin' me-"

Suddenly Remy was holding her close. "Don't **ever** think that, Rogue. I've done a lot of stupid things, but if I ever hurt y'..." He trailed off.

Rogue allowed herself to love him for a moment. She needed to. "Ya gonna invite me in or what?"

Remy smiled down at her. "Nobody's stoppin y', _chere_."

And in that moment Rogue **knew** everything was all right.

(Well, that's it. The end. Kaputski. This story has been getting SO many hits. I expect some reviews, people! ...even if you just want to complain about the ending. As for the AMA fans, I have a couple of oneshots in the works, both Chalice. One is gonna be a direct sequel to "They Say I'm Insane" and the other is just an idea as of yet. So, yeah. Review!)


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